Through two rounds of competition, Katie Laehn led the Illinois States women golf team to a tenth-place standing, shooting a two -round total of 154 on Saturday.
Laehn, a sophomore from Wausau, Wis., carded a 76 after the first round and turned in a 78 after the second eighteen to tie for the 23rd spot and to lead the Birds in scoring. Teammate Ashlee Johnson is tied for 28th, shooting a 76-78 in Saturdays rounds for a total of 156. Samantha Richdale stands in a tie for 50th, Kaila Fuller is 53rd, Albiona Zhubi is tied for 62nd and Ashlie Rose is in a tie for 64th.
Although disappointed with the Redbirds effort on Saturdays rounds, Illinois State head coach
Ray Kralis was pleased with the way Laehn and Johnson played.
We obviously didnt get the team effort that we were hoping for but both Katie and Ashlee played real solid golf today, said Kralis. Their score doesnt really represent how well they played but they played well in both rounds. They were clearly the leaders on the course for our team.
Illinois State turned in a 303 after the first 18 holes but improved in the afternoon shooting a 299, putting it in tenth place among the 12 participating teams. Indiana is leading the invitational overall with a team score of 589.
Kralis hopes for a better showing from his team in Sundays final round.
We are a young team and that is one of our strengths, Kralis said. We just have to be patient, go out and be ready to play competitive golf. I know we can play better than this, we simply have to show it on the course tomorrow.
The Birds will resume play Sunday morning at Finkbine Golf Course in Iowa City, Iowa with an 8:30 a.m. shotgun start. The teams will play the final round of eighteen to conclude the 54-hole tournament.
